The following disclosure relates to a sheet conveying apparatus.
There is known a sheet supplying apparatus as one example of conventional sheet conveying apparatuses. This sheet supplying apparatus includes a chute, a set roller, a pressure roller, and a separating roller. The separating roller is generally called a retard roller.
The chute has an upper surface for supporting a sheet or sheets. The pressure roller presses the sheet supported on the upper surface of the chute, toward the set roller. The set roller is rotatable about a rotation shaft. The set roller is rotated while being in contact with the sheet supported on the upper surface of the chute, to convey the sheet to the downstream side in the conveying direction along the conveyance path. The separating roller is located downstream of the pressure roller in the conveying direction and opposes the set roller. In the case where a plurality of sheets are supplied, the sheets are separated one by one and conveyed by the set roller and the separating roller toward the downstream side in the conveying direction.
This sheet supplying apparatus further includes a flap and a set guide provided upstream of the separating roller in the conveying direction. The flap is supported so as to be pivotable about a rotation shaft that is located opposite to the rotation shaft of the set roller relative to the upper surface of the chute. The flap is movable between (i) a first position at which a distal end portion of the flap intersects the conveyance path to restrict movement of leading edges of the sheets supported on the upper surface of the chute and (ii) a second position at which the distal end portion does not intersect the conveyance path and is located more downstream in the conveying direction than at the first position. The set guide is supported so as to be pivotable about a rotation shaft that is located opposite to the rotation shaft of the flap relative to the upper surface of the chute. A small recess is formed in a downstream end portion of the set guide in the conveying direction. The set guide is movable between (a) a third position at which the set guide restricts movement of the flap to the second position by contact of the recess with the distal end portion of the flap located at the first position from a downstream side in the conveying direction and (b) a fourth position at which the set guide is spaced apart from the distal end portion of the flap located at the first position to allow movement of the flap to the second position.